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CLAY Sports Day. First Aid Training
What a packed day — after which everyone’s muscles definitely hurt! Our very first スポーツ大会(スポーツ たいかい) , CLAY Sports Day, was a huge success! At our school, we have 4 classes — two for second-year students and two for first-year students — so 4 teams took part in CLAY Sports Day. But today didn’t start with fun and games; it started with life-saving training . Each class had a 45-minute masterclass where they could practice on a mannequin how to save a person’s life. We had a l
7 hours ago2 min read


Bicycle riding rules: Lecture from the Kofu Police
Ms. Araki and Mr. Ishiyama from the Traffic Planning Division of the Yamanashi Prefectural Police Headquarters visited our school and gave a presentation on Japanese traffic rules. Although they travel around the prefecture every day to conduct traffic safety classes in various places, this time they kindly offered a special lecture for our international students, using simple Japanese that was very clear and easy to understand. They spoke slowly and clearly, sometimes adding
Nov 201 min read


Halloween 2025
Today started a little differently than usual. Instead of our regular teachers, the morning meeting was attended by witches, wizards, a talking pumpkin, and the Lorax! Naturally, the lessons were also conducted by magical beings and other mysterious creatures. Even phone calls and interviews were handled in full costume! The whole school has been decorated for Halloween since the beginning of October to bring a Halloweeny autumn mood. We hope we managed to do that! 🍁🎃 Durin
Nov 141 min read


入学式2025年10月
This time, our Entrance Ceremony was held at one of the hotels in Yamanashi Prefecture. During the ceremony, our school director, Shimura-sensei, and Mr. Masaharu Nakagawa gave their speeches. This year’s representative of the new students, Pempero-san, gave a speech to his fellow classmates and encouraged everyone to do their best and move toward success together. 入学式おめでとうございます! Dear new students, congratulations on your entrance ceremony! Starting a new life in another coun
Oct 211 min read


Dashain 2025
This year, we once again celebrated Dashain together at the girls’ dormitory. Our dormitory leader, Rajani-san, gave a short speech, greeting everyone and expressing her gratitude to the teachers and friends for their kindness and care. Yoda-sensei placed tika made of red rice on everyone’s forehead as part of the traditional blessing. The students prepared plenty of delicious food — rice, curry, and even chips! There were several kinds of curry, and each came in two versions
Oct 21 min read


Best Free Websites, Apps and Tools to Learn Japanese 2025
There are many websites for learning Japanese. Today, we would like to share some websites, apps, and tools that work as great resources...
Aug 224 min read


Study Holidays in Japan: Leonardo’s Story
Meet Leonardo, a professional rugby player who came to Japan just for 3 months on a tourist visa — enough to study basic Japanese, pass the JLPT, and prepare to apply for a student visa and university admission next year!
Jul 175 min read


CLAY in Tokyo 2025
We went to Tokyo — and it was AWESOME! Every year, we take our second-year students to Tokyo for the 進学説明会 (しんがくせつめいかい / shingaku...
Jun 231 min read


Japanese podcasts for beginners
One of the most common tips from Japanese teachers for improving your language skills is: listen more ! In one of our previous blog posts, we introduced some Spotify channels with Japanese podcasts . But… where should you start? Which one should you choose? This time, we've selected 5 specific podcast episodes that are perfect for beginners and a great way to get into the habit of listening to natural Japanese. ・ ことのは・日本語の会話 Ep33 【N5~】 せいとがまちがって使っている日本語🤨 Ep48 【N5~】 きびとやまむの趣
May 301 min read
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山梨外語学院
Culture and Language Academy of Yamanashi
Monday-Friday: 8:30-17:30
Saturday, Sunday: closed
055-255-1100
support@clay-academy.jp (for students)
400-0016, Takeda 4−1−29, Kofu city, Yamanashi prefecture, Japan
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